THE SIN OF ELI

1 SAMUEL 2:12 "Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not
the LORD.

PROVERBS 13:24 "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth
him chasteneth him betimes.

PROVERBS 23:13 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou
beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.

Eli did not manage his household according to God's rules for family government. He
followed his own judgment. The fond father overlooked the faults and sins of his sons in
their childhood, flattering himself that after a time they would outgrow their evil
tendencies. Many are now making a similar mistake. They think they know a better
way of training their children than that which God has given in His word. They foster
wrong tendencies in them, urging as an excuse, "They are too young to be punished. Wait
till they become older, and can be reasoned with." Thus wrong habits are left to
strengthen until they become second nature. The children grow up without restraint,
with traits of character that are a lifelong curse to them and are liable to be reproduced in
others. {PP 578.3}

GENESIS 18:19 "For I know him, that he will command his children and his
household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do
justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that
which he hath spoken of him.

God had said of Abraham, "I know him, that he will command his children and his
household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and
judgment." Genesis 18:19. But Eli allowed his children to control him. The father became
subject to the children. The curse of transgression was apparent in the corruption and evil
that marked the course of his sons. They had no proper appreciation of the character
of God or of the sacredness of His law. His service was to them a common thing.
From childhood they had been accustomed to the sanctuary and its service; but instead of
becoming more reverent, they had lost all sense of its holiness and significance. The
father had not corrected their want of reverence for his authority, had not checked
their disrespect for the solemn services of the sanctuary; and when they reached
manhood, they were full of the deadly fruits of skepticism and rebellion. {PP 575.2}

1 SAMUEL 2:22 "Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto
all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of
the tabernacle of the congregation.
(23 And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil
dealings by all this people.
24 Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the LORD’S
people to transgress.
25 If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man
sin against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they
hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORD would
slay them.)
17 Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD:
for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

These unfaithful priests also transgressed God's law and dishonored their sacred office
by their vile and degrading practices;yet they continued to pollute by their presence the
tabernacle of God. Many of the people, filled with indignation at the corrupt course of
Hophni and Phinehas, ceased to come up to the appointed place of worship. Thus the
service which God had ordained was despised and neglected because associated with the
sins of wicked men, while those whose hearts were inclined to evil were emboldened in
sin. Ungodliness, profligacy, and even idolatry prevailed to a fearful extent. {PP 576.4}

Eli had greatly erred in permitting his sons to minister in holy office. By excusing their
course, on one pretext and another, he became blinded to their sins; but at last they
reached a pass where he could no longer hide his eyes from the crimes of his sons. The
people complained of their violent deeds, and the high priest was grieved and distressed.
He dared remain silent no longer. But his sons had been brought up to think of no one but
themselves, and now they cared for no one else. They saw the grief of their father, but
their hard hearts were not touched. They heard his mild admonitions, but they were not
impressed, nor would they change their evil course though warned of the consequences of
their sins. Had Eli dealt justly with his wicked sons, they would have been rejected from
the priestly office and punished with death. Dreading thus to bring public disgrace and
condemnation upon them, he sustained them in the most sacred positions of trust. He still
permitted them to mingle their corruption with the holy service of God and to inflict upon
the cause of truth an injury which years could not efface. But when the judge of Israel
neglected his work, God took the matter in hand. {PP 577.1}

Eli was priest and judge in Israel. He held the highest and most responsible positions
among the people of God. As a man divinely chosen for the sacred duties of the
priesthood, and set over the land as the highest judicial authority, he was looked up to as
an example, and he wielded a great influence over the tribes of Israel. But although he
had been appointed to govern the people, he did not rule his own household. Eli was an
indulgent father. Loving peace and ease, he did not exercise his authority to correct the
evil habits and passions of his children. Rather than contend with them or punish them,
he would submit to their will and give them their own way. Instead of regarding the
education of his sons as one of the most important of his responsibilities, he treated the
matter as of little consequence. The priest and judge of Israel had not been left in
darkness as to the duty of restraining and governing the children that God had given to
his care. But Eli shrank from this duty, because it involved crossing the will of his sons,
and would make it necessary to punish and deny them. Without weighing the terrible
consequences that would follow his course, he indulged his children in whatever they
desired and neglected the work of fitting them for the service of God and the duties of
life. {PP 575.1}

LET US COMPARE ELI WITH US.. IS IT POSSIBLE, TODAY, THAT MY

ATTITUDE AT HOME IS AFFECTING THE CHURCH?

PROVERBS 19:18 ¶ Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy
soul spare for his crying.

AS LEADERS, IF WE ARE GOING TO DO SOMETHING WE MUST DO

WHEN IS STILL HOPE; BECAUSE AFTER MAY BE TO LATE

The neglect of Eli is brought plainly before every father and mother in the land. As the
result of his unsanctified affection or his unwillingness to do a disagreeable duty, he
reaped a harvest of iniquity in his perverse sons. Both the parent who permitted the
wickedness and the children who practiced it were guilty before God, and He would
accept no sacrifice or offering for their transgression. {CG 276.2}

The wickedness which exists in the world today may be traced to the neglect of parents to
discipline themselves and their children. Thousands upon thousands of Satan's victims
are what they are because of the injudicious way in which they were managed
during their childhood. The stern rebuke of God is upon this mismanagement. {CG
276.4}

God held Eli, as a priest and judge of Israel, accountable for the moral and religious
standing of his people, and in a special sense for the character of his sons. He should first
have attempted to restrain evil by mild measures; but if these did not avail, he should
have subdued the wrong by the severest means. He incurred the Lord's displeasure by not
reproving sin and executing justice upon the sinner. He could not be depended upon to
keep Israel pure. Those who have too little courage to reprove wrong, or who through
indolence or lack of interest make no earnest effort to purify the family or the
church of God, are held accountable for the evil that may result from their
neglect of duty. We are just as responsible for evils that we might have checked in
others by exercise of parental or pastoral authority as if the acts had been our own.
{PP 578.2}

TODAY WE ARE TO CHECK THE CONDITION OF OUR HOME AND CHURCH

OR GOD MAY CONSIDER RESPONSIBLE AS ELI